Of course, that was on top of already being a non-Asian Black woman in the public eye in South Korea, where cultural homogeneity is the norm and having porcelain white skin is one of the many ideals of beauty. This facet of her identity set Reid further apart from other members, especially since the marketing around it was so robust. “It was such a focal point in every press release, and it was something I wasn’t prepared for,” Reid said. Nonetheless, she remembers being warmly received by Korean audiences, adding that fans would cheer her on during her parts and wait to see her when her scheduled events ended.“By skipping training, it put me in an awkward position to the rest of the group. It made me the exception: the lucky one who didn’t have to do anything to be there.”
“My CEO wanted me to look like myself, and he was always on my team,” she explained. But the staff didn’t know how to style her naturally curly hair, so she’d eventually take that upon herself as well. “The first time they did my hair, it was in a big dreadlock,” she recalled. “Picking around, I knew I was going to lose tons of hair in the process.”Despite these issues and “feeling like an afterthought a lot of the time,” Reid was content to take her beauty routine upon herself. “It didn’t really bother me since there hadn’t been that situation before [with my skin tone and hair texture], so I feel like they didn’t know what to prepare for,” she said. Overall, she believes that the last-minute nature of her debut was why “they didn’t have the time and wherewithal” to get what she needed.“I didn’t feel like they were staying true to my features, and it was really important to me that I looked like myself.”
An already challenging situation would quickly morph into an impossible one. She was still the odd woman out for choreography, wardrobe, and the like. “At a certain point, to still [be] left out felt intentional,” she said. And so she terminated her contract, formally leaving BP RaNia in August 2017.“Idols aren’t supposed to speak up, but I was doing that.”
When asked for the best piece of advice she can give to aspiring idols who aren’t of East Asian descent, Reid advises staying true to yourself above all. “There will be a lot of pressure and a lot of times you feel like your dream is contingent upon conforming, but that’s not the case. You can be yourself and your dreams can come true,” she said.From there, she advised prioritizing health and happiness at all times. “When something is your dream, it’s easy to keep justifying that [mistreatment is] worth it. But if you’re no longer happy, it’s no longer worth it,” she said. “You’re allowed to make one dream come true and move on to the next, which is what I’m doing.” Reid is currently working on new music planned for release within the next six months. She’s also been writing a young adult novel and a memoir—both of which offer a behind-the-scenes look at idol life.“Take what you learned and apply it to the next thing you do. You’ll have a lot more discipline and worldliness, and you’ll have a lot more to give,” she said. “Also, learn Korean.”Follow Michele Ross on Instagram.“I think that when Black culture (or any other culture) is going to be influential on the art that you’re putting out, you take on the responsibility of making yourself aware because you’re utilizing it for your own gain.”